Wi-Fi Not Working on Ubuntu? Here’s How to Fix it

Ubuntu is a powerful, free open-source operating system that is good for beginners who want to explore Linux and seasoned professionals who want a solid, secure system for projects and the like. However, despite all its virtues, sometimes you might have issues connecting to Wi-Fi networks.

A Wi-Fi connection issue can be either a hardware or software issue. Here are some actionable solutions if users find themselves having an issue connecting to Wi-Fi networks.

Note: the biggest issue users will face is having a wireless card that is made by Broadcom. While the manufacturer is part of the Linux Foundation, this doesn’t mean that their driver support is good all the time. Aside from the drivers, another issue is the TKIP encryption that is in use.

Issue One: Device not detected

If the wireless device is not detected by Ubuntu (or any distro for that matter), then you will need to access the Terminal and type the following command:

sudo lsusb

if you use a plug in USB wireless card/dongle, and

sudolspci

if you have an internal wireless card.

If the response from these commands comes back with an output similar to the screenshot below, then you are in luck: Ubuntu can find the card. It is usually identified by “Network Controller” or “Ethernet Controller.”

In the past, a lot of Linux distributions have had difficulty finding the wireless card. Thankfully, support has gotten a lot better, so this is now a rare instance.

Additional Commands

You can also use the following command to test if the machine can see the wireless device; users may need to install lshw on their machine first.

If this is the case, and the system finds the wireless card, you can proceed to installing the driver/module as described below.

Issue Two: Driver module missing

Following on from the successful lsusb and lspci commands, providing Ubuntu can see the wireless card, you can assume that the firmware is working, just that the system has no idea what to do with the card. This is where drivers or modules are needed.

Go back to the terminal and type the following command:

sudolsmod

You see a list of modules that are used. In order to activate your module, type the following command where “modulename” is the name of your chipset.

sudo modprobe modulename

For example, if your wireless chipset is “RT2870,” it would be as follows:

sudo modprobe rt2800usb

After this, run the lsmod command again to see if it has loaded correctly.

Load module automatically at boot

It is a rare occasion, but sometimes the module will not persist from boot. In this case you can force it to load permanently. Enter the command below into the Terminal:

sudonano/etc/modules

The nano text editor will open up. Add your module name at the bottom and save the file. You will need to reboot and check to see if the wireless card can now see networks to enable you to connect as normal.

If you get stuck, then repeat the process. Thankfully, Ubuntu has some useful help pages in their online documentation that you can also read through. Additionally, you can use the built-in help within the terminal by entering:

man lsusb
manlspci

Issue Three: DNS

It is rare that the DNS will be an issue; however, it is worth investigating should you still have connection issues. From the Terminal, type the following command to assess where the DNS is coming from:

nmcli device show wlan1 |grep IP4.DNS

This will show you the LAN address of the router. If it doesn’t work, you may have to change “wlan1” to whatever your wireless uses. The following command can also be used to grab the designation:

ip address

Once you have this information, your next method is to ping your router’s LAN address. If this works, try to ping Google’s DNS servers:

ping 8.8.8.8

With these results you can establish where the DNS issue is. If all devices within your home or office are giving page load errors, then change the router DNS to Google or Open DNS servers. You’ll have to consult your router manufacturer for how to do this, but it is generally done within the admin pages, most commonly by logging onto 192.168.0.1 or similar.

If your DNS issue is Ubuntu only, then follow these steps by using the Network Manager GUI: